A few days ago, I published an article titled, "7 Management Traits That Will Make All Your Employees Quit." Now it is time to look at the other side of the coin. The previous column sparked a tremendous conversation surrounding leadership. Several commentators made the point that they don't think bad leaders are capable of change. I'm not so sure about that. I think people can evolve professionally and as a leader, just like they do elsewhere in life. Consider this quote from, Vince Lombardi, the legendary football coach of the Green Bay Packers, "leaders are made, they are not born. They are made by hard effort, which is the price which all of us must pay to achieve any goal that is worthwhile." I believe that with some effort put forth everyone can improve their leadership skills. That said, here are some managerial traits that good leaders exhibit that I think will encourage employees to stick around for the long haul.
Be Supportive
A good manager gives his/her employees the tools they need to be successful. A bad manager assigns tasks with little or no direction, and then becomes upset when the employee doesn't meet the expectation. Remember the Seinfeld episode where George doesn't hear his boss' instructions, but he is too afraid of what his boss might do if he asks for clarification? He spends the whole week pretending to know what to do. Two words come to mind here, lost productivity. Be approachable so your employees feel they can ask questions.
